Festival goers, workers fill hotels

A town full of “No Vacancy” signs is what Todd Quartararo, director of marketing for the Newport Beach Film Festival, calls a “luxury problem.” The festival expects about 40,000 moviegoers this year from when the event kicked off last week until things wrap up Thursday.

“We definitely had sold-out houses this weekend — our challenge was placing everybody from out of town,” Quartararo said. “The hotel managers have been so helpful trying to accommodate everyone and making calls to neighboring hotels.”

Many local hotel officials said Monday they were booked through the weekend and occupancy rates remain high for the rest of the week.

While festival organizers won’t have firm numbers on attendance until after the credits roll on the last film, the numbers seem to be on target for a good year, with movies playing to sold-out theaters all weekend, Quartararo said. The Island Hotel, 690 Newport Center Drive, the official accommodations of the festival was booked solid this weekend, as was the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa, 900 Newport Center Drive, he said.

“The Island Hotel is definitely busy and has been impacted in a positive way by the film festival,” said Marguarite Clark, an Island Hotel spokeswoman.

The film festival is an important earner for the city, especially this year when much of the country is feeling the effects of a troubled economy, said Richard Luehrs, the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce president.

“Hotels get some overnight stays out of it and it’s at a particularly good time because we could use the boost right now,” Luehrs said.

Newport Beach was projected to earn about $11 million in hotel taxes last year alone, according to the latest city data available.

Many guests at the Fairmont Newport Beach hotel, 4500 MacArthur Blvd., might not even be in town for the film festival, but decide to extend their stay when they find out the event is going on, said Michelle Heston, Fairmont Newport Beach spokeswoman.

Occupancy at the Fairmont is slightly higher than usual this week because of the festival, she said. The hotel is considering marketing special deals for festival goers in years to come.

“We have definitely seen business grow during the festival — I think we have a nice mix of guests who are here for business and for leisure,” Heston said.

While luxury hotels take up a big chunk of business for the film festival, smaller hotels also get a boost.

The Newport Channel Inn, 6030 W. Coast Hwy., was booked solid last weekend and expected business to stay steady for the rest of the week, said Brion Amendt, hotel general manager.

“We tend to be the best value, and we have some wonderful rates for people who can’t afford to stay at the Hyatt Regency,” Amendt said.

Many independent filmmakers on a budget stay at the hotel, as do projectionists and other people who play a vital role in running the festival, Amendt said.

BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at [email protected].